English Dictionary: Franchise | by the DICT Development Group |
3 results for Franchise | |
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]: | |
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From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: | |
Franchise \Fran"chise\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Franchised}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Franchising}.] [Cf. OF. franchir to free, F., to cross.] To make free; to enfranchise; to give liberty to. --Shak. | |
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: | |
Franchise \Fran"chise\ (? [or] ?; 277), n. [F., fr. franc, fem. franche, free. See {Frank}, a.] 1. Exemption from constraint or oppression; freedom; liberty. [Obs.] --Spenser. 2. (LAw) A particular privilege conferred by grant from a sovereign or a government, and vested in individuals; an imunity or exemption from ordinary jurisdiction; a constitutional or statutory right or privilege, esp. the right to vote. Election by universal suffrage, as modified by the Constitution, is the one crowning franchise of the American people. --W. H. Seward. 3. The district or jurisdiction to which a particular privilege extends; the limits of an immunity; hence, an asylum or sanctuary. Churches and mobasteries in Spain are franchises for criminals. --London Encyc. 4. Magnanimity; generosity; liberality; frankness; nobility. [bd]Franchise in woman.[b8] [Obs.] --Chaucer. {Elective franchise}, the privilege or right of voting in an election of public officers. |